


Broken

by cresselia8themoon



Category: Pinky and the Brain
Genre: Cause i originally wrote this in July 2020, Gen, cross posted from ffn, the fandom revival hadn't taken place yet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-16
Updated: 2021-01-16
Packaged: 2021-03-13 19:33:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,189
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28783491
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cresselia8themoon/pseuds/cresselia8themoon
Summary: Early on in their friendship, Pinky tries to heal his best friend's injuries, but he doesn't have much experience yet. He may have unwittingly driven a wedge between himself and his best friend in the whole wide world.
Comments: 5
Kudos: 26





	Broken

**Author's Note:**

> AN: Inspiration comes from skimmingsurface's 100 Ways to Feel. Specifically, #52 Broken. I like to think this story is set early in Pinky and Brain's partnership. As a result, Snowball's departure is still fairly fresh in Brain's mind and affects his characterization here.

So many pretty dizzy swirling stars! Pinky giggled, his entire body swaying like one of those spinny tops he could never get to spin for more than a few seconds. Brain really outdid himself on this plan with the Hip-Hop Scooper Austria Protractor, even though it went kaplooey and threw them off the building.

Still, it was fun pretending to be a champion skydiver while it lasted!

"Oh that was jolly good fun!" Pinky exclaimed. The dizziness let him go, but Pinky knew it would be back soon enough. Next time, they'd play tilt-a-whirl together for sure! Pinky always forgot to suggest that game. "Do they have medals for skydiving? I think my triple doozy cartwheel was worth a bronze. What do you think, Brain? Brain?"

Pinky looked around, but there was only the burnt metal of Brain's creation and several chipped bricks around him.

"Are you playing Marco Polo, Brain?" Pinky massaged his temple in the same way Brain often did when he pondered deep ponderings. He could really use those little invisible beings that helped Brain come up with his plans right now. "Great idea! Marco!"

"HELP!"

Oh dear. Brain needed lessons on how to play Marco Polo. It was the one of the most important games of the day alongside Chase Me and Candyland after all.

"Marco!" Pinky called again.

A nearby brick shifted onto its side, revealing part of a pink, crooked tail underneath.

Pinky gasped, rushing to the other side of the brick, where Brain laid flat on his stomach with his limbs splayed out. "Brain, are you okay? Did the fall make you forget about Marco Polo?"

Brain gritted his teeth so hard Pinky thought they'd break. The Tooth Fairy would never visit him again if he didn't have teeth!

"Of course I know who Marco Polo is, you…you imbecile," Brain ground out, trying to push himself up. Pinky grabbed Brain's arm to be helpful, but Brain drew a shuddering breath and yanked his arm away. "Get this brick off my tail at once."

Pinky's tail tingled, like it was smooshed under a brick too. It didn't feel nearly as good as one of Brain's bops though.

"Okay, Brain," Pinky said. He pushed his entire body against the brick, taking extra care to avoid stepping on Brain's tail. Since the brick was already lopsided, he only had to push slightly harder than he normally pushed a pencil until it landed on a different side. "All clear!"

Brain groaned and stood up, reaching behind his back and bringing his tail closer to inspect it. The break closest to his body made a small clicking noise, and Brain winced as he carefully felt the area the brick had unkindly smashed.

Pinky flicked his own tail, feeling the wavy and waggy sweeps he could make that Brain's stiff tail never seemed to do. Now that he thought about it, Brain really only used his tail to open the cage. It wasn't good for jumping rope or a pretend wand that magically made his voice louder.

It was the saddest tale of a mouse's tail he'd ever heard. Well, except for the movie with the little Russian mouse who got separated from his parents. That was even sadder.

"Another failure," Brain sighed, finally letting go of his tail. It snapped back into place, the tip bent at an odd angle. "No portion of the Hyperscopic Astral Projector can be salvaged. Come, Pinky. We should head back to the lab and recuperate for tomorrow night."

"What are we gonna do tomorrow night, Brain?" Pinky asked, following Brain out of the rubble. "Besides making cheese cube and chunky peanut butter sandwiches, of course."

Brain whipped around, his fists clenching against his sides. His scowl deepened, even though Brain always scowled. But somehow it looked deeper.

"Brain, you're all coily like a spring," Pinky said. Nothing a quick massage wouldn't fix though. "Not good for your shoulders. Nope. Not at all."

He reached for Brain's shoulders, but his hands were slapped away with a sharp smack.

"Not in the mood, Pinky!" Brain snarled, his entire body wracked with tension. "Keep your absurd comments to yourself!"

Brain stomped far ahead of Pinky, and although he never remained out of sight for long, the distance was just too much for them to talk normally.

"Poit…" Pinky murmured to a faded poster of David Hasselhoff as he passed a Blockbuster store.

It just seemed like the only thing he could say, and Mr. Hasselhoff didn't really offer any useful advice.

o-o-o-o-o

As soon as they got back to the lab, Pinky brought out the shared first aid kit. He hoped that a little TLC would help bring Brain's super extra grumblyness down to normal grumblyness.

Brain scribbled angry red marks in his notebook with an equally angry red pen, slashing out a bunch of numbers arranged in a pattern that vaguely reminded Pinky of a goose. Or was it a rutabaga? Either way, Brain's tail needed all the dinosaur bandages it could hold.

Dinosaur band-aids were happy. So were Disney Princess band-aids and superhero band-aids cause they gave him hugs on his owies and they'd stay there until it didn't hurt anymore. But Pinky didn't like removing them much cause that meant goodbye and the bandages never wanted to let go of his fur. So he let the bandages keep the fur they never meant to rip out as a going away gift.

Pinky opened the first aid kit, bringing out the magic salve that soothed all their aches and bumps and bruises and the dinosaur band-aids. Now if only he could pick a band-aid. That was always a toughie.

Sharpteeth's arms were too tiny for a good hug, and longnecks and threehorns didn't have arms at all. Flyers had wings they could wrap you in, and Pinky almost picked that, but then his hand brushed against the blue band-aid with a smiling mama swimmer and happy little baby swimmers.

A happy band-aid would give happier hugs! It was more obviouser than string cheese and chocolate pudding!

Pinky tucked the swimmer band-aid under his arm and walked over to Brain, who muttered furiously to himself as he slammed his hand against the calculator keys. Even the clacking was frantic and couldn't be good for Brain's palm at all.

"Impossible! I couldn't have miscalculated the distance. There was enough range in the Projector to circle the globe two times over," Brain growled, pacing in front of the number display, wincing with every step he took. But his feet continued to make the angry pitter-patter sounds. After about three or eight rounds of pacing across the counter, he finally looked up with a scowl. "What do you want, Pinky?"

"Oh, I filled up on cheese and food pellets before we left," Pinky said as he unwrapped the swimmer band-aid. "My stomach doesn't want anything right now. But your owies look like they could use a little something. Narf!"

Brain glanced at his tailtip, which was still hanging at an odd angle. "It hardly matters in the grand scheme of things, Pinky. A slight injury won't incapacitate me. Whatever poor imitations of thoughts you have in your cotton-filled head are entirely unwarranted."

"Oh no, Brain. I don't have cotton in my head." Pinky shook his head just to be certain. Nope. No cotton here. "It's more like gum, actually."

"Even worse," Brain sighed.

Pinky waited a moment or two, but Brain made no move to fix himself up. Maybe he needed directions?

"So…" Pinky rocked on his heels. "You gonna apply the band-aid or-"

"I will if you'll stop pestering me about it!" Brain snapped. He cast the swimmer band-aid aside and stomped past Pinky, pulling out a plain brown roll of bandages and a small bottle of water-that-didn't-taste-like-water from the first-aid kit. With a small huff, Brain turned his back to Pinky and tried to reach around for his tail, only to find that it was a lot harder to bring it to the front since he'd waited too long to treat it.

"Do you need help?" Pinky asked.

"No," Brain said curtly. But his tail just wasn't recuperating. And that wasn't right. It was hurting Brain, so it was being a very bad tail right now.

He uncapped the bottle and squeezed it to get a little of the not-water out, then brushed his tailtip against the nozzle, managing to get a little of the not-water on the achy-breaky area.

Then Brain fidgeted for a while, turning every way he could to try and hold his tail and the bandages at the same time, but nothing seemed to work. He tried to straighten one of the bends in his tail, but his frown grew frownier and his foot stomped angrily. Then he tried to hold the bandages in place with his foot, but the roll…well, rolled away.

Pinky ran after the roll of plain bandages that didn't have the swimmer band-aid's happy colors, but if they still gave good hugs then it was alright if they didn't have happy colors he could see. He caught the bandages before they could roll off the counter.

"Bad band-aids!" Pinky scolded the bundle in his arms as he carried them back to his bestest friend. "You're supposed to be helping Brain!"

"They're inanimate objects subject to the laws of physics, annoying as it may be," Brain said, keeping both hands on his tail so it didn't escape again. "Bring that roll over here and stay a considerable distance away from me while I wrap this up."

Pinky set the roll next to Brain and backed up a few steps. "Is considerable more or less than an inch?"

Or maybe that was milliliters. Distances could be awfully confusing.

"Do I dare grace that with a response?" Brain muttered.

Pinky wondered what they were going to dare Grace to do, maybe lick a broom or quack like a horse.

Brain tried to wrap his tailtip again, but neither the bandages or tail were following instructions. He sat down, leaning forward to avoid hurting the other breaks in his tail, yet he got nowhere and Pinky was starting to have a very bad ache in his chest cause Brain wasn't getting any closer to feeling better.

If the not-water helped Brain's tail, maybe it would help Pinky's ache too? Pinky squeezed the bottle, but he put his face too close to the nozzle and several drops of not-water splashed onto his nose instead. Giggling at his slight mishap, Pinky tried to touch his nose to his chest to get the dampness into the right place.

Except his nose didn't want to touch his achy chest. Like how he couldn't lick his elbow. Unless there was a mirror. Then he could lick the mirror Pinky's elbow.

"Pinky! Stop grooming yourself in such a primitive manner!" Brain scolded. "If you're truly a genetically spliced mouse, then act like it!"

"Zort! Okay, Brain," Pinky nodded, rubbing his damp nose with one hand. "How's your achy-breaky tail?"

Brain rolled his eyes. "At a most unfortunate and unreachable area for me to attempt alone, as much as I detest admitting it. Since you're here, you might as well make yourself useful and"- his shoulders stiffened- "hold my tail while I wrap it."

Oh, how he loved being useful! It was one of the best fuls out there! Pinky skipped over to Brain, tripping over himself with one hoppy foot and smacking his jaw against the counter.

"Be grateful I'm in far too much pain to hurt you right now," Brain said, his jaw jutting out in a little pout.

Pinky recovered from his fall and sat up, hiding a chortle behind his hands. Brain's pouty and squinty face was just too funny.

"A neon sign is far more subtle than you," Brain grumbled.

"I love looking at the pretty neon signs!" Pinky exclaimed. "Especially if they have arrows on them. All arrows lead to yummy cheese!"

Pinky carefully took hold of Brain's crooked tail, one hand near the tip and his other hand next to a sharp break. Brain took a deep breath, his ears flattening ever so slightly. But he wasn't letting go of his tail.

"Brain, aren't you gonna put the band-aids on?" Pinky asked.

His bestest friend was acting funny, and not the good sort of funny either. Brain's entire body was tense, his chest rising and falling quickly.

"Y-yes. Of course I'm wrapping it," Brain said. He snatched up the bandages, frowning at the messy bundle. "It would be far easier if this was rolled properly."

Once Brain finally found a loose end, he tore off a small strip of band-aid from the roll and folded it over his tail. His hands flicked against Pinky's while he wrapped his tail and Pinky couldn't help smiling cause it felt like softer bops for his fingers.

"Hold still, Pinky," Brain ordered. He pushed Pinky's hand closer to the tip so he could check the area underneath.

But Pinky was holding still. He was being more stiller than a statue!

Then Pinky looked behind him. His tail was swishy-sweepy all over the place! It wasn't obeying Brain at all!

"Bad tail!" Pinky scolded, leaning back a little to catch his very naughty tail. "Stay still or I'll put you on a seventeen second timeout, mistah! Narf!"

Then he realized he'd leaned back too much.

 _Snap_.

It was only a quiet crick, barely louder than the hum of the lab, but now Brain's tailtip felt stiff and crooked and bent, the nearby bandage pointing sharply to the ceiling.

Brain's pink eyes were wide, the widest Pinky had ever seen them. But it wasn't the wide eyes that came when something went unexpectedly right in his plans. His mouth opened in surprise, his big ears hung limply.

It was Brain's pained cry that reminded Pinky to let go of the crooked tail. Slowly, Pinky slipped the tip into Brain's palm and scooted back.

"I'm s-sorry…I didn't…I really…" Pinky stammered.

But Brain's fearful expression made Pinky's chest ache worse. Wasn't the not-water supposed to help? Instead it made Pinky's heart drop into his tummy.

"It appears I was mistaken," Brain said, his voice so soft that Pinky had to strain both ears to pick up on it.

"Mistaken?" Pinky asked.

"Yes," Brain nodded, but it wasn't a happy yes. Pinky's ears dropped. Brain's yeses were supposed to be happy. "I never should've entrusted you with any important task."

"You don't trust me, Brain?" Pinky didn't know what the n sound at the beginning of trust was, but he knew he trusted Brain with everything important like food pellets and wheels and scented markers. "It's alright. I trust you."

"That's not how it works, you naïve dolt!" Brain shouted, leaping to his feet. He scowled and turned away from Pinky. "If I can't expect you to follow the simplest instructions, then clearly I have no business trusting you."

He couldn't see Brain's face anymore.

"I'm sorry for breaking your tail," Pinky whispered.

Brain turned slightly, only one pink eye visible beneath his brow. Pinky didn't know what Brain was thinking, but it definitely had to be something supersmart. Pinky tried to make his face look really truly sorry, but he didn't know what sorry looked like on a face, so he took his best guess.

Then Brain walked into the cage without another word.

Cleaning the counter was a lonely job without Brain to scold him for making a mess of things. When everything was stored in the first-aid kit, Pinky yawned, ready to cuddle up next to Brain in their twin straw beds.

Only to find Brain had shifted his entire bed to another corner.

Pinky nuzzled his lonely straw bed. Brain settled in the darkest part of the cage, away from the sliver of starlight that spilled from their window. The broken, bandaged tail was hidden from view, where it couldn't be hurt for the next few hours.

Straw rustled as Brain tossed and turned in his corner. And no matter how many horses Pinky counted, he couldn't sleep either.

o-o-o-o-o

The next morning, a techie plucked Pinky out of his wheel. Pinky waved goodbye to Brain, but he just mumbled a big word to himself and stayed out of reach from the techie's buddy, who was making a funny face as she tried to grab Brain with a double gloved hand.

Early morning exercise was so fun! Pinky giggled as he dangled and swung around in the air, the techie's fingers pinching his tail to keep him from falling. Of course, his wheel was great too. He couldn't leave his poor wheel out of the fun!

The techie set Pinky in a covered maze full of twisty turns and turny twists. He pressed a button on a nearby camera, and left Pinky alone once he was through setting everything up.

"Poor man." Pinky shook his head as the techie dashed into the breakroom for coffee and donuts. "Narf! He really shouldn't skip breakfast. What kind of donuts do you think they've got in there, Brain? I could go for some powdered sugar donut holes myself."

The camera swiveled, the only light blinkedy-blinking on its side. Every path was pitch-black, the vague outlines of high walls surrounding him.

"I don't want any bla-bla big word sugar cause I'm a big ol' grouch, Pinky."

Oh, that was Brain alright.

"But wouldn't you just be a lil' grouch, Brain? Only your head is big and chubby. The rest of you is ittier-bittier than a mouse!"

"Don't use that word, you icicle."

"Poit. Sorry, Brain. Which way to the yummy cheese?" Pinky rubbed his tummy, which was growling very Brain-like growls.

"We'll hug the left wall. So simple even a something-something like you can do it."

A left wall then! Brilliant!

"Whatever you say, Brain!" Pinky saluted and skipped over to what he guessed was the left wall, though it was a little hard to tell which was left since it was so dark. Then he threw his arms around the wall and hugged it.

Since walls couldn't hug back, Pinky hugged twice as hard, only releasing his embrace when Brain cleared his throat. Pinky kept a hand along the wall as he skipped further into the dark maze.

"Just like nighttime, except without the stars. Where'd the stars go, Brain? I thought they only slept during the day."

The left wall disappeared under his hand, and no matter how much Pinky tried to convince it to stay, it wouldn't come with him. He grasped at empty, black space instead.

"I can't find the left wall, Brain. Help me look?"

Brain didn't reply.

"Okay, you can think about your plan thingies. Um…Mom always said if I get lost, I should find my way with echoes! Just like a hummingbird!" Pinky inhaled and picked a random direction, though it was awfully confusing when he couldn't tell which direction he was facing. Maybe southeast? "ZORT!"

_Zort! Zort! Zort!_

"Five echoes deep!" Pinky exclaimed as he charged down the corridor. "Shouldn't be too far to the cheese now, Brain!"

Except he couldn't smell cheese or pellets or any kind of food. And he couldn't see his own hand anymore.

Nor did he hear Brain's footsteps.

"Brain? Where'd you go?" Pinky called.

He ran after his bestest friend, his chest aching deeply. But he pushed past the bad pain, which was sore and raw and not at all like the tingly feelings Brain's smacks often gave him.

Pinky's nose smashed into a wall or two as he tried to find Brain, his tail tripping him several times. But he kept running, cause if he didn't, he'd get lost and never see Brain again.

"I don't know where I'm going, Brain. Am I close?"

Pinky wrung his tail, the tip pressed against his chest. If he let go, the scary monsters would snatch it.

"Are you still here, Brain?"

Pinky's lip trembled, a tear slipping down his cheek and splashing on his hand.

"I'm sorry I broke your tail! If you wa…wanna go…I don't mind. P-p-poit," Pinky whimpered. He reached out, only to touch a wall. He turned in another direction. Another wall. "Can…can you just show me the way out? Before you leave."

Brain wouldn't let the walls stop him. He was smart enough to figure out the way through. Where Pinky couldn't follow cause he was just a dum-dum who couldn't pass through walls.

It was dark and wet and dark all over again. He didn't know where he was. He just wanted to see again.

Pinky curled himself against the wall. But the wall wasn't a good hugger. Good huggers have arms, and walls don't have arms.

He didn't deserve huggy arms though.

He broke Brain's tail just like he broke Mom and Sis and Dad's hearts.

What would his family think of him now? Sis would be heartbroken. He just wanted to be a good brother for her, though he didn't know how he could be a good brother if he wasn't there to teach her how to play Chase Me or eat food pellets.

Mom would cry cause she had such a dum-dum for a son. Dad would be mad cause he made Mom cry.

Brain could take over the world cause he wouldn't be there to break his plans, his things, his tail.

And who could blame them?

He didn't want anything to do with himself either.

_Tap. Tap. Tap._

Pinky's ears flicked.

The scary monster was coming.

_Tap. Tap. Tap._

The taps kept coming, and Pinky curled up tighter.

"Sorry. You'll have to come back some other time. I'm too stringy and blue right now," Pinky whispered. "Blue tastes icky and sad."

The taps stopped, and a thin beam of light flashed in the corner of Pinky's vision.

"Pinky, what are you babbling about?"

The mad-worry-more mad voice.

 _Brain_.

"Guess you found me after all, Brain." Pinky tried to smile, but his lips wouldn't turn up like they were supposed to. "Thought you'd made it to the end with your magic maze solving skills."

"It's called deduction, Pinky."

"Oh."

Neither spoke. For a while, there was nothing except the nervous tapping of fingers against metal.

"What are you doing, Brain? Aren't you busy?"

Brain was a busybee. He was always grumping, always pondering, always scribbling.

"…don't know where the wheel oil is. I can't concentrate while the wheel is incessantly squeaking."

"It's by the wheel. I always keep them together."

"Yes…of course," Brain said, an odd flicker in his voice. "You'll just have to show me then. Let's go."

Yet Pinky didn't get up.

"You don't need me," Pinky forced out. It hurt to think it, to speak it, but it was true. "I'll just break the wheel like I broke your tail. I broke your tail, Brain. I'll break everything."

A sob clawed its way out of his throat, and Pinky shushed it, his breath hitching.

It was dark, it was dingy, and Pinky just wanted out. He wanted to see so badly.

"Turn around and lift your head, Pinky."

Pinky wiped a few tears and obeyed, pressing his back to the wall as he pushed himself up.

The thin beam from the mini flashlight illuminated Brain's face for the briefest moment before the flashlight was set down, the beam pointing to the wall. Then Brain turned around, picking up a long, thin plastic tube and dragging it over to Pinky.

"The employees are unprofessional and always leave their cheap party favors lying around," Brain said. He looped the plastic tube around Pinky's neck. "But I know more efficient uses for these chemicals."

Both ends clicked together, a blue glow working its way through the tubing until Pinky had a neon blue ring around his neck.

"A glowstick?" Pinky asked. Not that he wasn't appreciative. Things were much less scary now, thanks to Brain and the glowstick. He loved it. He really truly honestly did. But he'd broken Brain's tail, and now Brain was giving him pretty things? "I love it, but-"

"I don't need a reminder," Brain snapped. He sighed heavily and sat down, drawing his knees up to his chest. "I'd like to pose a hypothesis for you."

A glowstick _and_ a hippo? It was so much, and Pinky wasn't sure if he deserved either one. "Thanks, but I don't think an entire hippopotamus would fit in here. And there's definitely not enough light for a photoshoot."

"A hypothesis is a question. Evidently I was wrong that you'd learn something from the childish poster of the scientific method next to our cage."

If all he wanted to do was ask a question, he could've just asked! Brain was so confused sometimes.

The glowstick's blue light shone right on Brain's head, and Pinky pushed and pulled on the tubing, making the light dance in pretty patterns.

"Why did you apologize when you didn't bend my tail on purpose?" Brain asked. With some difficulty, he brought his tail around and gingerly touched the broken tip.

"I hurt you, Brain," Pinky sniffed, unable to stop the tear from rolling down his cheek. "I didn't mean to, but I did, and I really am sorry. Honest."

"As several failed plans have proven, you're incapable of deception. I'll try to remember that," Brain said quietly. His hand reached out before stopping an inch away from the tear, then dropped down again. Brain looked away.

Pinky's smile still wasn't working. He had Brain and the pretty glowstick. Something was still missing.

"Brain? How many sorries should I say to make you feel better? Am I not saying it enough?" Pinky trembled and cried onto the glowstick.

No matter how many sorries it took, he'd say however many he needed to!

"Pinky, your lacrimal ducts are the ones leaking, not mine. Apologies aren't necessary." Brain ducked his head, avoiding Pinky's gaze. "There's…a method you haven't tried yet. I suppose an excessively needy being such as yourself requires it. I'm usually above these displays of course, but I can make an allowance for this occasion and this won't become a habit in the future so don't get any ideas in your lack of a mind or-"

"I don't know what you're getting at, Brain," Pinky said. He'd never seen Brain so nervous-grumpy before.

"I'm asking if you require a hug, Pinky!" Brain scowled.

Pinky's jaw dropped, and he was sure it was on the ground somewhere. He'd have to crawl around on his hands and knees to find it again.

"Egad, a hug?" Pinky breathed.

A fresh wave of tears sprung up, but these felt…different. They were relieving tears. Happy tears. Joyful tears.

"I can still rescind my offer," Brain warned, his ears flattening.

Pinky laughed, and it was the most wonderful laugh he'd had all day. "I'd love a hug, Brain," he said when Brain's foot tapped in annoyance.

Brain took a deep breath, slowly leaning his head against Pinky's chest. His cheek smushed against Pinky's fur, and Pinky smiled cause Brain looked adorable in his grumbly-stormy way.

"I apologize too, Pinky," Brain murmured as he pushed the glowstick out of the way and laid his arms across Pinky's belly. "I can trust you to a certain extent. You just…caught me off-guard when you bent my tail."

The achy feeling was gone, only leaving a warm pool of butterflies in its place. Pinky hummed in delight and wrapped his arms around Brain. His bestest friend deserved the bestest hugs!

"How so, Brain?" Pinky asked, relaxing his arms when Brain's shoulders tensed ever so slightly.

"Your expression. You were regretful from the moment you heard the snap. I suppose it was just easier to be furious," Brain said, his shoulders relaxing. "It's always simpler."

"More simple than me, Brain?"

Brain rolled his eyes. "Nothing's more simple than you, Pinky."

They sat in comfy silence for a while longer, the darkness no longer bothering them. The glowstick scared all those hungry maze monsters away.

Then Pinky's tummy tingled and tickled, a loud giggle escaping him. Brain's fingers lightly dug into Pinky's tummy, though Brain's eyes were blissfully closed. He must've been tired from all the tossing and turning last night.

Pinky's tummy growled softly and Brain jolted awake, blinking down at his fingers. He stood up quickly and hid his hands behind his back.

"Ah, I was just pondering," Brain said hastily. "What transpired in this maze must remain in this maze. Understand?"

Pinky nodded, wagging his finger at Glowstick to keep him quiet too. "Narf! Glowstick and I won't tell a soul!"

Brain picked up his mini flashlight, then turned and faced Pinky so quickly that he nearly blinded himself with the light beam. "That's it! Pinky, are you pondering what I'm pondering?" Excitement laced his voice.

"I think so, Brain. But blackbirds in pies wouldn't be a popular choice in a bake sale," Pinky wrinkled his nose as Brain grabbed his hand and pulled him along.

"Fortunately for you, there's blackberry pie in the fridge. I suppose that's more suitable for your palate?"

Pinky's tummy growled even louder, and his mouth watered at the thought of sweet blackberries. "Oh no, Brain. I want to eat the blackberries, not paint with them."

Brain sighed a long sigh, vaguely reminding Pinky of a leaky tire. "After we're satiated, I'll work on a plan that will ensure our successful conquest of the world. I'll need some time to come up with the exact number of glowsticks we'll need per capita, so you'll have to be inane elsewhere for a while."

Pinky smiled and cheered, and Brain even bopped him with his little flashlight. His bestest friend knew how to make him happy, and happiness was the loveliest feeling of all.

o-o-o-o-o

The glowstick plan failed, and so did all the following plans. While Pinky didn't mind healing and resting for the next tomorrow night, it didn't take long before Brain's tail suffered another bruise after a fancy lady's high heel stepped on it.

Brain's nose scrunched up as Pinky gently dribbled a few drops of sanitizer onto the bruise. It wasn't called not-water like he'd originally thought. He never would've known if it hadn't been for Brain.

Pinky hummed and measured out a bandage, then stopped humming cause he needed to concentrate on Brain's tail, which needed extra care and gentleness since it didn't heal as fast as the rest of him.

"You can be swishy later, tail," Pinky scolded his own tail, which fell back to the cage floor. His tail was getting really good at obeying now.

Pinky wrapped the bandage around the bent and bruised tail, concentrating super hard. Once the bandage was snug like a pug in a mug, Pinky pressed his fingers against his lips and tapped them against the bandage for extra encouragement.

"Thank you, Pinky," Brain said, the barest hint of a smile on his face.

Pinky smiled back. He loved making Brain happy too.

**Author's Note:**

> I am not sorry for butchering the English language. English? I know not of whom you speak.
> 
> This story's a bit more unpolished than I would like, mostly because Pinky's a tough POV to write, especially if you're trying to dig deep. I still like the end result though.


End file.
